Locking assembly for cloth material



June 9, 1964 R. R. GUNDERsoN 3,136,015

LOCKING ASSEMBLY FOR CLOTH MATERIAL Filed Jan. 26, 1962 United States Patent C) 3,136,015 LOCKING ASSEMBLY FOR CLOTH MATERIAL Ralph R. Gunderson, 7100 S. Shore Drive, Chicago 49, 1li. Filed lian. 26, 1962, Ser. No. 168,905 8 Claims. (Cl. 24-162) This invention relates to a locking device for securing together multiple plies of cloth material or the like, and more particularly to a locking device for use in holding cloth diaper ends together upon a baby.

The conventional safety pin has commonly been used to pierce overlapping cloth material to hold the cloth in a desired position. Such safety pins oftentimes have caused serious accidents to young children. Open pins, if swallowed, frequently catch and pierce the esophagus with attendant hazardous consequences. In spite of careful conduct, such pins sometimes fall upon the face of a baby having its diapers changed. In addition, the sharp end of the pin frequently pierces the finger of the parent or the skin of the child, and such pins may become unclasped during use and puncture a childs skin. These hazards to safety are well known and appreciated by every parent.

The primary object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved locking device for securing cloth materials together in a more effective and improved manner.

Another object is to provide such a locking device which will obviate the hazards present with the use of safety pins or the like.

A further object is to provide a locking device having a securing portion for positively holding multiple plies together and which securing portion can be fastened in both operative andinoperative position.

Still another object is to provide such a locking device which is easily adapted for manufacture in mass production, and which in use can be placed in locked operative position in a facile manner.

A further object is to provide a device for securing baby diapers together which device combines the attributes of friction fastening with positive locking.

The invention is illustrated in a preferred embodiment in the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a broken sectional view of the locking assembly taken as indicated on line 1 1 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 2 is a broken topplan view of the locking assem- Vs s of FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is an end elevational view of the locking assembly talcen from the right of FIG. 4 with the cloth material removed;

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary sectional view with the slid-y able pin in inoperative position illustrating the latching means of the slidable pin in unlatched position so that the pin is free to be slid forwardly of the locking assembly; and

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the locking assembly with the slidable pin positioned as in FIG. 4.

In the embodiment illustrated, the locking assembly includes a base member, generally designated 10, a housing member, generally designated 11, and a slidable locktherein.

ing or fastening member, generally designated 12. The base member 10 and the housing member 11 are preferably joined together by an intermediate hinge strap 13, shown arcuately in FIG. 1. The base member, the housing member and the hinge strap are all preferably formed of a plastic material.

The base member 10 is provided with a normally flat connecting strap 14 which has a projecting stud or insert 15 upstanding from its free end. The insert 15 may be rounded at its free end as at 16 and preferably has an oblarte opening or passageway 17 formed therethrough.

The projecting insert 15 of the base member 10 is shaped and positioned to cooperate with portions of the khousing member 11 so as to position layers of cloth material or other iiexible sheet material 18 between the insert 15 and the housing member 11. To this end, thep'housing member 11 is preferably provided with an annular portion 2t) which affords an inner peripherally extending face 21`aifording an opening for receiving the cloth material 13. The housing member 11 is also preferably provided with an extension arm 22 affording a support for ythe locking member 12, and to which the hinge strap 13 may be integrally secured. The arm 22 has a longitudinally extending guide slot 23 in which the slidable locking member 12 is mounted.

When the projecting insert 15 is in closed operative position within the opening of the annular portion 20, the locking member 12 is provided with means for positively holding the projecting insert 15 and the cloth material 18 in locked position. To this end, the locking member 12 is provided with a slidable pin 24 which is adapted to pass through an aperture 25 of a guide bearing 26 of the annular portion 211 and to be received in a Well or recess 27 in the opposite side of the annular portion 20. As best seen in FIG. 3, the transverse passageway of the projecting insert 15 is also positioned to be in alignment with the aperture 25 and the recess 27 when the insert 15 is in' operative position so that the slidable pin 24 positively iocks the end 15 within the opening of the annular portion 20.

The locking member 12 has amain body 28 which is capable of being moved forwardly and rearwardly in the guide slot 23 of the housing 11 as shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4. The main body 28 is provided with a depending portion 30 which makes a close slidable fit within the slot 23, and the depending portion 30 and the main body 23 each receive the shank of a guide pin 31 imbedded The guide pin 31 has an enlarged head which bears on the underside of the extension arm 22, as best shown in FIG. 5, to retain the main body 28 of the locking member 12 within the guide'slot 23.

Cooperating latch means are also provided on the guide arm 22 and the locking member 12 for positively holding the slidable pin 24 in its projecting locking position (shown in FIG. 3) and in its retracted inoperative position (shown in FIG. 4). To this end, the main body 28 is provided with a forward latch portion 32 which is separated from the main body 28 by a U-shaped slot 33 to aiford a hingingaction to the latch portion 32 about a narrow connecting portion 34.

In a similar manner, the main body 28 is also pro- `vided with a rear latch portion 35 which is separated from the main 'body 28 by `a rear U-shaped slot k36 to afford hinging action to the rear latch portion 35 about a thin connecting portion 37.

Thus, when the slidable locking pin 24 is moved forwardly of the housing member 11 into projecting locking position, the forward end of the depending portion 36 abuts the forward end of the guide slot 23, and the rearlatch portion 35 can be caused toV ex downwardly so that its free 'projecting edge is received within a trans- 3 versely extending notch 38 as best shown in FIG. 3. Thus, the slidable locking member 12 is positively' latched in its forward locking position.

Similarly, as shown in FIG. 4, when the locking member 12 is moved rearwardly in the guide slot 23 so that the rear face of the depending portion 30 abuts the rear end of the slot 23, the forward latch portion 32 is adapted to be reecived in a front transversely extending notch 40. As illustrated in FIG. 7, either of the latch portions 32 or 3S may be removed from their restraining notches 3S or 40 by pinching the latch portions inwardly toward each other into the space afforded by the U-shaped slots 33 and 36 so that the projecting ends of the latch portions are removed from their respective notches. When the latch portions are removed from the notches, of course, the locking member is slidable within the guide slot 23 as previously explained.

In operation, the present locking mechanism is particularly useful in locking overlapping layers of diapers together on a child. The hinge strap 13 is simply placed about the upper edge of the overlapped diaper cloth and the projecting insert 15 forces interposed layers of diaper cloth into the opening of the annular portion 20 by pressure from the thumb and lingers. The size of the projecting insert in relation to the opening in the annular portion is such as to accommodate single or multiple layers of cloth so that the cloth layers are held firmly in frictional engagement between the inner peripheral face 21 of the annular portion 20 and the outer lateral surface of the projecting insert 15. Finally, the locking member 12 is slid forwardly of the housing member 11 so that the slidable pin 24 penetrates through the layers of diaper cloth on opposite sides of the projecting insert 1S and positively holds the cloth and the projecting insert 15 in locked position.

In the present device, it should be noted that there are no sharp exposed points when the device is in locked position or in unlocked position. In unlocked position, the point of the slidable pin 24 is completely recessed within the guide bearing 26 of the annular portion 20. Furthermore, the pin is latched in this recessed position. Even if the pin should become partially exposed within the opening of the annular portion 20, the pin is protected by the surrounding annular portion. Thus, if a child should swallow the entire device, there would be no projecting pin to penetrate the digestive tract. The structure of the present invention thus provides a unitary locking structure which may be formed from plastic, which is simple and easy to operate, and which has unusual safety features at all times. Furthermore, the locking device secures overlapping multiple ply cloth together in a facile and superior manner not heretofore accomplished in this art.

The foregoing detailed description is given for clearness of understanding only and no unnecessary limitations should be understood therefrom, for some modifications will be obvious to those skilled in the art.

I claim:

1. A locking assembly for cloth material, comprising: a housing provided with an annular portion having an inner peripherally extending face defining an opening for the cloth, said annular portion being provided with pinreceiving guide means; a projecting insert provided with a passageway therethrough and of a size to be received within the opening of the annular portion, the insert being adapted to force the cloth into the cloth-receiving opening so that portions of the cloth are positioned between the inner face and the projecting insert; a fastening element slidably mounted on the housing, said fastening element including a locking pin positioned in the guide means for longitudinal movement between a retracted position and a locking position in which locking position the pin is disposed across the opening of the annular portion and through the insert passageway and interposed cloth to lock the cloth and insert within the annular portion; and `latching portions provided on the fastening element and on the housing, said latching portions being positioned to latch the fastening element against longitudinal sliding movement when in locking position.

2. A locking assembly for cloth material as speciiied in claim l, in which the latching portions on the fastening element and on the housing are positioned to latch the fastening element against longitudinal sliding movement when in retracted position.

3. A locking assembly for cloth material as specified in claim l, in which the guide means includesra pair of aligned pin-receiving openings on opposite sides of the inner face of the annular portion, and the locking pin of the fastening element has a free pointed end portion of such length in respect to the opening of the housing that the pointed end portion is shielded within the pinreceiving openings in the housing when in retracted position and when in locking position.

4. A locking assembly for cloth material, comprising: a housing provided with an annular portion having an inner peripherally extending face defining an opening for the cloth, said annular portion being provided with pinreceiving guide means; a projecting insert provided with a passageway therethrough and of a size to be received within the opening of the annular portion, the insert being adapted to force the cloth into the cloth-receiving opening so that portions of the cloth are positioned between the inner face and the projecting insert; a fastening element slidably mounted on the housing, said fastening element including a locking pin positioned in the guide means for longitudinal movement between a retracted position and a locking position in which locking position the pin is disposed across the opening of the annular portion and through the insert passageway and interposed cloth to lock the cloth and insert within the annular portion; and latching portions provided on the fastening element and on the housing, said latching portions being positioned to latch the fastening element against longitudinal sliding movement when in locking position and when in retracted position.

5. A locking assembly for cloth material, comprising: a housing provided with an annular portion having an inner peripherally extending face dening an opening for the cloth, said annular portion being provided with pinreceiving guide means; a projecting insert provided with a passageway therethrough and of a size to be received within the opening of the annular portion, the insert being adapted to force the cloth into the cloth-receiving opening so that portions of the cloth are positioned between the inner face and the projecting insert; and a fastening element slidably mounted on the housing, the fastening element including a locking pin positioned in the guide means for longitudinal movement between a retracted position and a locking position in which locking position the pin is disposed across the opening of the annular portion and through the insert passageway and interposed cloth to lock the cloth and insert within the annular portion, the housing having an arm extending outwardly of the annular portion to support said fastening element, the fastening element being provided with a body portion slidable on the arm and carrying the locking pin for movement between locking position and retracted position, said body portion and said arm each having a latching portion positioned for engagement when the locking pin is in locking position to hold said fastening element against longitudinal sliding movement.

6. A locking assembly for cloth material, comprising: a housing for receiving a projecting portion of cloth material, the housing having an inner peripherally extending face affording an opening for the cloth material, and being provided with pin-receiving guide means; a fastening element slidably mounted on the housing, the fastening element including a locking pin positioned in the guide means for longitudinal movement between a retracted position and a locking position in Which locking position the pin is disposed across the opening and through the projecting portion of cloth material to secure the cloth material Within the opening of the housing; and latching portions provided on the fastening element and on the housing, said latching portions being positioned to latch the fastening element against longitudinal sliding movement when in looking position.

7. A locking assembly for cloth material as specied in claim 6 in which a projecting insert is provided of a size to be received Within the opening of the housing so as to force the cloth material into the cloth-receiving opening of the housing between the inner face of the housing face attording an opening for the cloth, said housing ybeing provided With pin-receiving guide means and With a latching notch spaced laterally of said innerfaee; a fastening element slidably mounted on the housing, the fastening element including a locking pin positioned in the guide means for longitudinal movement between a retracted position and a locking position in which the pin is disposed across the opening and through the projecting portion of cloth material to secure the cloth material Within the opening of the housing; and a yieldable latch portiony on the fastening element engageahle With said latching notch on the housing When the locking pin is in locked position to hold the fastening element in said locked position and against longitudinal slidable movement.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,373,586 Marinetti Apr. 10, 1945 12,644,211 v Sumner July 7, 1953 2,833,013 Nonaks May 6, 1958 

1. A LOCKING ASSEMBLY FOR CLOTH MATERIAL, COMPRISING: A HOUSING PROVIDED WITH AN ANNULAR PORTION HAVING AN INNER PERIPHERALLY EXTENDING FACE DEFINING AN OPENING FOR THE CLOTH, SAID ANNULAR PORTION BEING PROVIDED WITH PINRECEIVING GUIDE MEANS; A PROJECTING INSERT PROVIDED WITH A PASSAGEWAY THERETHROUGH AND OF A SIZE TO BE RECEIVED WITHIN THE OPENING OF THE ANNULAR PORTION, THE INSERT BEING ADAPTED TO FORCE THE CLOTH INTO THE CLOTH-RECEIVING OPENING SO THAT PORTIONS OF THE CLOTH ARE POSITIONED BETWEEN THE INNER FACE AND THE PROJECTING INSERT; A FASTENING ELEMENT SLIDABLY MOUNTED ON THE HOUSING, SAID FASTENING ELEMENT INCLUDING A LOCKING PIN POSITIONED IN THE GUIDE MEANS FOR LONGITUDINAL MOVEMENT BETWEEN A RETRACTED 